New Libya PM’s home attacked

Armed men attacked the home of new Libyan Prime Minister Ahmed Maiteeq in the capital Tripoli early on Tuesday, an aide said.

“There was an attack with rockets and small arms on the prime minister's house,” the official said on condition of anonymity.

Maiteeq and his family were in the house at the time of the 3.00am (01.00 GMT) attack, but escaped unharmed.

The premier's guards opened fire on the attackers, wounding two of them and arresting them, the official added.

The interim parliament passed a vote of confidence on Sunday in Maiteeq and his new cabinet, amid rising lawlessness in the North African nation dogged by power struggles between rival former-rebel militias.

Libya has been awash with weapons since the NATO-backed uprising that toppled and killed longtime dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

Successive governments have struggled to control the myriad of ex-rebel militias that have carved out fiefdoms across the country. - Sapa-AFP